I am Mari Kalkun, musician and singer. I live with my family in the southern edge of Estonia, Võrumaa, where most of my music and creations are born. It is a good place to raise my daughter Linda, who is already helping me out with singing. I deeply value and cherish roots and our mighty nature. I love Võro language, a unique local "secret" language, and the dome landscapes of Southern Estonia, both spiritual and actual home for me.

This project is an invitation for you to enter my apple orchard.

I have traveled far and wide in the world with my music, but now it has been a time to stop for a while. And in a way, I am glad. It has given us the opportunity to breathe in, breathe out... and allow things to develop in their own way. I've had time to observe nature more closely than before, to practice the art of being present and being in constant dialogue with Mother Earth.

Like a dream, the album "Õunaaia album" ("Apple Orchard Album") appeared in my mind during these times at home. It started as a luminous flickering between the eyelids. You know, the peculiar glow of apple blossoms that you only encounter sitting in the garden on a peaceful May evening, being still. I sat there thinking about my ancestors, who have built the farmhouse where I live today, who have planted the apple trees that are still standing and bearing fruit today. There is still something that lasts, persists and sustains: roots.

Recording birdsong before sunrise. Photo: Mari Kalkun, May 1 2020

Hereby I am asking for your help to record and release a short album, accompanied by a concert video shot in my flourishing apple orchard. "Apple Orchard Album" is a light and thoughtful dialogue with ancestors, nature, the yearning for happiness. It strives for the perfect harmony between simplicity, freedom and nature. I will bring my harmonium and my grandmother's piano to the wild garden to hear how it starts to ring and the stories it has to tell. Improvisation and seizing the moment will play an important role in the recording process.

In my performance and work on the "Apple Orchard Album" you will hear my new music and the poetry by contemporary authors. The mightiest wordsmiths of Võromaa, Jan Rahman and Triinu Laan, are the brainpower behind many of the song lyrics. The short album is set to feature a new interpretation of the evergreen Estonian folk song "I would like to be at home" ("Ma tahaksin kodus olla"), which is bound to touch every soul with nostalgia in one way or another. Regarding the recordings, I consider the unmediated emotion and organic sound to be important part of the process and Martin Kikas (Ö Stuudio) will help me to achieve this. The wonderful video magician Ants Tammik will take care of the visuals.

Collecting blossoms for the album artwork, May 7 2020

The title of the album should sound fascinating abroad, as well, encapsulating the wonders of our language. The seven letter word for "the apple orchard's" – "õunaaia" in Estonian – contains only one consonant! Have you encountered any other language so odd? A potential business partner from Japan has already expressed interest in the record.

I am asking the Hooandja backers for help with covering the costs of recording the music, producing the album and concert-video. I have brought together a magnificent team and cannot wait to share the fruits of our collaboration! During times like these it is important to know that you, dear listeners and friends, are still out there!

The artwork and album sleeve of "Apple Orchard Album" will be handcrafted and completed by myself in collaboration with Dreamlamb. The album will see a limited release only and can be acquired exclusively via Hooandja or from me directly. In the artwork design I plan to use the flowers of my own orchard as a reminder of the spring when we had TIME.